Tonneau covers are used to cover the open cargo bed of pickup trucks and protect the material inside the cargo bed from weather conditions, theft and vandalisms. In addition, tonneau covers improve vehicle fuel economy. Tonneau covers are generally designed to lie flat and flush with the top walls of the cargo bed of the truck. Therefore, a covered bed results in a more aerodynamic flow around the truck, reducing the drag force on the truck and thus, a better fuel efficiency.
Tonneau covers can be hard cover or soft cover. Hard tonneau covers are made of rigid material, like metal or fiberglass, whereas, soft covers are made of flexible material, like vinyl or cloth. The cover has to be water resistant and durable. It can be either a single cut piece or in multiple pieces. The single cut piece provides a better cargo protection compared to multi piece unit, which may have leakage in the rain.
To provide security as well as preventing vibration of the cover during vehicle travel, the cover has to be tightly connected to the truck bed. This is usually achieved by some type of a clamp or latch system that is installed on the cover and is locked onto the bed walls. One of the major issues with hard tonneau covers is that rails and tubes may have to be added to the truck bed. In many cases, holes may have to be drilled on the truck bed. These mechanism may result in rusting of the drilled sections and disrupt the original look of the truck.
In order to eliminate the above mentioned problems, several different clamp down covers have been introduced. Examples of clamp systems can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 129,077 to Weldy and U.S. Pat. No. 8,146,982 to Williamson. However, these securing systems are relatively complex and costly to manufacture. The user must know the configuration of the pickup truck wall. Both Opening and closing steps of these clamp systems are difficult and time consuming. Each side should be opened and closed separately, which is a big negative point for the system especially in the bad weather conditions.
Currently, there is a need for more simple and customized securing system. Furthermore, the diversity of cargo bed construction and wall configurations require specific clamps for each specific model of pick-up truck. The present invention improves the conventional locking and securing of tonneau covers.